A Cat Out of the Game
by DeathbladeMeister
Summary: Nepeta Leijon is accepted to one of the most best schools on Earth- Derse Academy. But during a freak weather accident, she begins to remember things that can't possibly have happened- but between school rivalries, mysterious noises and strange orange men stalking the school crypts, the first thing to worry about is who's blood gets spilled first. HumanStuck!AU, HighSchoolStuck!AU


Derse Academy of Performing Arts and Athletics was one of the best schools on Earth, alongside its' sister school, Prospit Institute for the Academically Gifted. Very few students were selected to attend either, and you needed a personal invitation from the staff themselves to attend. They were famous for spurning out politicians and actors and scientists and Olympians. An invitation to either school was a godsend, so saying no was never an option.

Unless you were Nepeta Leijon.

Nepeta was fifteen, and had moved halfway across the world to attend Derse. Maine to Manchester was a over three thousand miles; and whilst it didn't faze her Mom or her elder sister Meulin, Nepeta was definitely bothered. There was no reason why both she and Meulin couldn't have flown over and attended if they had to go, but Mom had taken the entire family away. Away from Aunt Kitty and Aunt Leona, from Uncle Jerry and little cousin Bella.

She was going to miss them all so much- never mind the friends she'd miss. Mom had said she'ds make new friends, but she was going to be in a class of students a year younger than herself. Because American students started school a year later than in Britain, she'd been place in the year that matched the number of years she'd been at school, rather than her age. She was going to start her fourth year with the fourteen- to fifteen year olds, when if going by her age she really should have started her fifth year.

But the purple cases were packed and initialled, uniforms bought and fitted, and they were hurtling down the motorway at eighty miles per hour to reach the train station. Nepeta had her acceptance letter open in her lap, and Meulin was typing furiously on her phone over Trollian. Nepeta had friends over Trollian as well, but had been so busy with the move she'd lost contact with most for the moment.

She glanced back down at the letter. She'd read it so much she could recite it in her sleep.

_N. Leijon,_

_You're kind of artistic and your work doesn't look like shit. Want to come to Derse? Sure you do, we're awesome. Get your ass on the train with all your shit on September second or you lose your place, tough cat titties._

_See you in September, unless we don't. Hah, as if._

_C. Cherub (Headmaster)_

Meulin had an identical letter with equally questionable wording. Nepeta wondered what the Headmaster was like- he himself was a former student at Derse, and his sister was the Headmistress of Prospit.

Nepeta sighed, and leant her head against the car window. She was excited, granted, but was so nervous. According to the letter, she'd gotten in because of her artwork, but she'd never entered it in any competitions of showed it around. Meulin had gotten in from her track and field prowess, but she'd been running professionally before she could talk.

Her phone beeped twice, the signal for a Trollian message. She logged in and her replied to friend.

-gallowsCalibrator began trolling arsenicCatnip-

GC: *TH3 M1GHTY DR4GON L34PS UPON TH3 D3F3NC3L3SS L1ON 4ND 1T SQU34LS 1N D1SCOMFORT!*  
AC: :33 *ac the lion kicks back her legs and throws away the mighty dragon!*  
GC: *4L4S, TH3 P4TH3T1C L1ON'S STR3NGTH 1S NO M4TCH FOR TH4T OF TH3 M1GHTY DR4GON!*  
AC: :33 *so the petite and very feline lion uses her superior agility to escape the grip of the dragon and proceeds to greet her*  
AC: :33 hi  
GC: H1 N3P  
GC: YOU H4V3N'T B33N ONL1N3 1N FOR3V3R  
GC: 1 ST4RT3D TO TH1NK YOU W3R3 D34D  
AC: :33 nope!  
AC: :33 just moving house  
GC: OH COOL  
GC: WH3R3?  
AC: :33 england  
AC: :33 we moved because of school  
GC: YOU G3T K1CK3D OUT?  
AC: :33 no!  
AC: :33 i got a scholarship and my sister did to  
GC: N1C3 WH1CH SCHOOL  
GC: 4R3 YOU GO1NG TO PROSP1T?  
GC: 1 GO TH3R3  
GC: SO DO3S MY S1ST3R  
AC: :33 oh nice good for you you must be really clever!  
AC: :33 but no im going to derse

-gallowsCalibrator ceased trolling arsenicCatnip-

AC: :33 terezi?

-gallowsCalibrator has blocked arsenicCatnip-

Nepeta gave her phone a very strange look, and placed it back in her bag at her feet. Meulin was also looking at her phone confusedly. she seemed to have been blocked too, and when Nepeta asked, it turned out the elder sisters' friend Kurloz had shut her off.

It was all very odd.

* * *

Mellony Leijon pulled into the car park in plenty of time to get her daughters on the Derse train. Outside there were many students pulling either gold or lilac case behind them- gold from Prospit, lilac for Derse. There were many more subtle differences too- Prospit students tended to be modestly dressed, and were on their own, with no parents, but maybe a sibling. Derse students were dressed outrageously- with otaku students and wizard cosplayers and pupils in little more than swimming costumes, and were surrounded in group packs.

An odd thing about the schools was that it tended to take siblings- it wasn't always the case, but very common. Terezi had mentioned that her sister also went to Prospit, and Nepeta had just seen a pair of twins go into the station- one in the Derse uniform, the other one in Prospit.

The sisters shared a tearful goodbye with their mother, who then drove back to the city at the lethal speed she always drove at. The two girls entered the station, and found it milling with students of both schools. Prospit students were against the golden electric train on the left, and Derse were boarding the purple steam train on the right. Meulin got on the train with the cases, promising to find them a car, and Nepeta went to buy drinks and chocolate for the two- hour-long train journey.

The station had a fairly large shop, and it looked like it was full of mainly Prospit students, with the occasional Derse milling around the coffee machine. Nepeta straightened her cat hat over her mousy hair, and entered. The tinkling bell overhead announced her entrance, and drew the attention of her peers in the shop. She got a few smiles from the Derseites, but mainly glares from Prospitans. She pulled her shoulders up further, pulled off the hat and burrowed her hands into her jeans pockets as she walked towards the refrigerators.

She grabbed a handful of Lion bars for them both, and reached up for two bottles of iced tea. She paid quickly, and began to hurry out, back the way she came, past the drinks fridge. There was an extremely short boy around her age, dressed in leather with a gelled mohawk towering above his head. He was trying to gain the attention of some of the students in the shop, but failing miserably. They all just seemed to ignore him.

His face kept falling with every person who walked past him, but something in his eyes seemed to be very used to the rejection. Nepeta couldn't help but feel sorry.

"Do you need anything?"

He jumped, and turned to face her, and pointed upwards. "Uhh, I was just wondering if someone could get those cans up on the top shelf, they're my brother's favourite, and I can't reach."

Nepeta grinned, and nodded. She wasn't much taller than the boy, but if she went up on the very tips of her toes, she could just about push the cans of Sprite towards her. She handed them over, and he gave a small smile.

"Thanks."

"It's no problem. I'm Nepeta, by the way."

"Uh, my name's Tavros. Tavros Nitram." Nepeta followed him to the cashier's desk. "Are you new?"

"Yeah, me and my sister moved over from the states to come to school. Are you new?"

Tavros shook his head. "I'm just starting my fourth year, and my big brother's starting his sixth."

"Same here- I've an older sister, Meulin- she's starting the eleventh grade- or sixth year, whichever, too!"

The pair carried on talking as Tavros paid and they walked out onto the platform, swapping sibling stories, friends and school experiences. A shrill whistle blew-it was almost ten o'clock, time to leave. Nepeta suddenly had an ingenious idea, realising that Tavros had waved to several friends getting on the Prospit train.

"Hey, do you have Trollian?"

He looked surprised. "Uh, yeah. I'm adiosToreador."

She pulled a random Sharpie out of her coat pocket, and quickly scribbled down the name on her arm, and wrote 'arsenicCatnip' on his.

"Message me, okay?"

He looked puzzled. "Aren't you getting on the Prospit train? We can share a car, I'm sure my friends won't uh, mind too much."

She shook her head. "I'm in Derse. I thought you were too, but-"

"HEY ASSHAT! STOP TALKING TO THE BRAIN-DEAD HIPPIES AND GET ON THE FUCKING TRAIN!"

Nepeta glanced up as Tavros began to back away from her, and she nearly vomited her heart.

A vibrantly ginger boy was waving his two middle fingers at her from the Prospit train window. He kept screaming obscenities at Tavros and ordering him to get on the train. Tavros ran to him, waving goodbye as he jumped onboard, and the boy turned his rage to Nepeta, as the Derse students watched from the windows.

"GET ON YOUR OWN FUCKING TRAIN, FUCKASS! AND WHEN YOU YOU GET TO YOUR DUMBASS SCHOOL, GIVE YOUR GRACIOUS MOTHERFUCKING HEADMASTER A GRATUITOUS 'FUCK YOU' FROM KARKAT VANTAS!"

Nepeta ran on the Derse train in terror with barley minutes to spare as Dersites began hurling insults back at Karkat Vantas. Prospit began to retaliate again, until both schools were pressed up against the windows, participating in what seemed to be an age-old school rivalry. Nepeta found Meulin in a car at the front with two Asian students, yelling at a older boy in clown makeup, telling him exactly where he could shove a juggling club.

Nepeta just stood and stared- she'd never known that her sister knew so much about which clown apparatus could fit in juggalo anatomy. Meulin turned round for a second, and noticed her sister, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"Hey, Nepurrta. You sure started a scene out there."

The younger sibling blushed, but had no time to respond as both trains suddenly jolted into life, travelling along the tracks practically side- by- side, causing cheers to go up and down the train cars. The commotion soon settled down, though, and Nepeta asked why they had all been yelling earlier.

The younger of the two other girls answered. "Oh, it's a long- standing tradition. And anyway, everyone knows that Prospit Institute is just another name for 'Young Offenders Lunatic Asylum.' It's full of idiot savants, special cases and arsonists."

Nepeta was just confused- none of the students she'd seen had been nasty, cruel, or even 'special'- though admittedly she'd only spoken to Tavros. Though still, that seemed like a broad stereotype of a lot of students.

"ファックは私のディックを吸うことができます."

Nepeta broke out of her train of thought, and stared in confusion at the older girl. "Excuse me?"

The younger just laughed, and Meulin giggled a little as well. "Ignore Damara. She refuses to speak in anything but Japanese." She stepped towards Nepeta. "I'm Aradia Megido, and that's my sister, Damara. I'm going to be in your class this year."

Nepeta suddenly relaxed again, and shook Aradia's hand. "Paws-itively exquisite to meet you."

They sat down and continued talking together. Nepeta learnt that the Megidos were British-Japanese, and had attended Derse the year previous, but not before that. Damara was in on her languages, Aradia on ancient art and history. They drank iced tea and ate chocolate, and joked and laughed. Arada was nice, and Damara was very lewd, from what Nepeta could tell, judging off by what little Aradia translated of her sister's speech.

It was all going so well, until the clouds grew dark and black and it began to pour with rain. The clouds looked like great monsters with swirling tentacles in the sky. The precipitation lashed at the windows, demanding entrance. Aradia began to look concerned.

"I've friend who's been going to Derse since first year, and apparently it always rains- but I've ever seen it like this."

Damara nodded to confirm her sister's statement.

The storm continued to grow until the sky was one great mass of water. The girls could see the rain rise on the tracks they travelled along, meaning they'd probably stop soon, for safety reasons. Lightning began to flash in the distance, in the direction of Derse, but growing closer at every clash.

Nepeta sat closer to the window- she loved watching storms, and the more violent the better. The lighting was really close now, the thunder not even waiting before its standard response. She pressed her face right up against the window, as the other three Dersites shuddered near the car door. Nepeta could only see one Prospitian watching as intensely as she was on the other train- Karkat Vantas. No-one could mistake that ginger hair. She waved, and he looked surprised, giving her a small wave back and a shy smile.

The next strike of lightning struck right in the middle of the two trains, catching Nepeta off-guard and startling her. The train stopped at the exact same moment as well- as abrupt as if it had run into some kind of barricade. Nepeta fell backwards, and as she did, she swore she saw a man with tangerine- orange skin and a green shirt stare at her from outside the train, and spoke only three words before she hit the floor and the wooden seat, and was consequently knocked out.

_It has begun._

* * *

_Your name is Nepeta Leijon._

_You live in a cave that is also a hive, but still mostly just a cave. You like to engage in friendly role playing, but not the dangerous kind. Never the dangerous kind. It's too dangerous! Too many of your good friends have gotten hurt that way._

_Your daily routine is dangerous enough as it is. You prowl the wilderness for great beasts, and stalk them and take them down with nothing but your sharp claws and teeth! You take them back to your cave and eat them, and from time to time,wear their pelts for fun. You like to paint wall comics using blood and soot and ash, depicting exciting tales from the hunt! And other goofy stories about you and your numerous pals. Your best pal of all is a little bossy, and people wonder why you even bother with him. But someone has to keep him pacified. If not you, then who? Everyone has an important job to do._

_Your trolltag is arsenicCatnip_ _and :33 *your sp33ch precedes itself with the face of your lusus who is pawssibly the cutest and purrhaps the bestest kitty you have ever s33n!*_

_You played a game with twelve other friends which you eventually won but you also lost. Your defeat ended in the death of all but three of your friends at least once. You're still not totally certain how that worked._

_But you weren't one of the ones that survived._

**_So why do you remember?_**

* * *

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**DbM out.**


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